Sci-Fi Encounters: Checking in with J. Kathleen Cheney, Jessica Subject
Today I have J. Kathleen Cheney as my first guest, talking about her Golden City fantasy series, set on an alternate version of Earth. I have to admit I was first drawn in by the gorgeous cover. When I started reading, the tale begins as a classic "rich girl planning to elope, abetted by her maid, both snatched by mistake…" but then, oh, wow, things take a dark twist, and not much is going to be the way the reader was expecting. I was completely drawn into the world building, the characters and the mystery. Then of course I had to devour the second book and am now eagerly awaiting the third.
A little about J. Kathleen (courtesy of the author):
Her novella Iron Shoes was a 2011 Nebula nominee. When not writing, Kathleen likes to don a mask and get sweaty fencing, both foil and saber. Quieter hobbies include putting on her Wellingtons and getting her hands dirty in the garden. She also enjoys traveling and taking care of her dogs.
The blurb about The Seat of Magic, book two in Golden City series (courtesy of Roc):
Magical beings have been banned from the Golden City for decades, though many live there in secret. Now humans and nonhumans alike are in danger as evil stalks the streets, growing more powerful with every kill … It's been two weeks since Oriana Paredes was banished from the Golden City. Police consultant Duilio Ferreira, who himself has a talent he must keep secret, can't escape the feeling that, though she's supposedly returned home to her people, Oriana is in danger.
Adding to Duilio's concerns is a string of recent murders in the city. Three victims have already been found, each without a mark upon her body. When a selkie under his brother's protection goes missing, Duilio fears the killer is also targeting nonhuman prey. To protect Oriana and uncover the truth, Duilio will have to risk revealing his own identity, put his trust in some unlikely allies, and consult a rare and malevolent text known as The Seat of Magic ...
Veronica: What was your inspiration for the series?
JKC: I started off a few years ago with a simple idea of a woman witnessing a crime, but she's unable to report it because she's an illegal there, so she has to try to find the killer herself. Everything else developed from there.
Veronica: Why choose Portugal for the setting? (I loved it but am curious ...)
JKC: Actually, when I did the very first rough draft, I set the story in Venice (after all, I needed water). But that first outline didn't have selkies in it. So it was only after I decided that the story needed selkies that I started looking about for a better location. Although most seal habitats are farther north, there are seals that visit northern Portugal, and the Portuguese islands (their range is now not nearly what it was at one point due to hunting). After reading up a bit on Portuguese culture, I decided that Portugal would work better for me than going with someplace very traditional like the Faroe Islands or Ireland. It was an unorthodox choice, but I'm still glad I chose it.
Veronica: Who was your favorite character to write and why?
JKC: I think it's most fun to write the characters who are the least like me, so Erdano has been one of my favorites in this series. He's the alpha male, but he's also kind of naïve. It makes him fun.
Veronica: Yes, Erdano grew on me in The Seat of Magic. Can you share your favorite quote from the second book?
JKC: "Someone somewhere uses elephants." Totally without context, that makes no sense. I rather enjoy that.
Veronica: Like a random tweet! Although of course the line does work in the novel itself. How many more books are planned in this series?
JKC: At this time I've planned one more book in this series, The Shores of Spain, which should be out next year. I will also release a novella in this setting, but at this time I'm not planning on going further than that. I'm already working on my fourth book for Ace/Roc, Dreaming Death, which is a second-world fantasy.
Veronica: Speaking of fantasies, what book would you recommend to someone who is just beginning to read science-fiction or fantasy?
JKC: I would start a science-fiction reader on C.J. Cherryh's Downbelow Station, with the caveat that it's a huge time commitment. But it has everything a sci-fi reader would want. For a fantasy reader, I might suggest Kristen Britain's Green Rider.
Veronica: And what's on your To-Do List?
JKC: My husband and I have talked about walking the Camino de Santiago, which starts in France, goes across the top of Spain, and ends up in Galicia. Unfortunately, it takes about five weeks to complete the walk, so we may not tackle that for a while!
Veronica: Thanks, J. Kathleen!
Find out more about J. Kathleen at jkathleencheney.wordpress.com.
CHECKING IN WITH JESSICA E. SUBJECT
Changing subjects a bit now … in the last column I talked about science-fiction romance audiobooks and my experiences as a self-published author, commissioning the audiobook, working directly with the narrators. Fellow SFR author Jessica E. Subject shares her experiences when her publisher decided to make the audiobook:
Jessica: When Decadent Publishing asked if I would like to have one or more of my stories turned into an audiobook, I jumped at the chance. I decided to try one title to start to see what the process involved and how things went. I originally thought that I'd like a male narrator because the male character is very strong in Another Night, Another Planet. But, I changed my mind when I heard the auditions. I'd given a somewhat sexy scene, and I found the female narrator to have read it much better. I had three auditions to listen to. Not very many, but that made it easier to choose. I didn't work with the narrator directly, as it went through Decadent, but I listened to the finished recording and was able to ask for changes and corrections.
When the entire story was recorded, I listened to it, and found it a bit strange. The narrator, Audrey Lusk, emphasized different things than I would have, but she made it work. The difference between writing a story and reading it out loud, I guess. And the erotic scenes, she nailed. They are perfect! I'm already looking forward to the next.
What Another Night, Another Planet is about (courtesy of Decadent Publishing):
Limited by status … Ava is a housekeeper aboard Star Spirit, a luxury cruise ship traveling between the Milky Way and the Belvarian System. Coming from a middle-class family on Earth, she is considered by passengers as nothing more than an object to be tossed away when they're done with her.
Shunned because of his lineage … Banned from several planets across the universe, Nate struggles to run his interstellar shipping business. But the DNA of an exterminated race runs through his blood, giving him a diluted form of their powers, and leaving him labeled as a terrorist.
Both searching for the one … Through her 1Night Stand dating service, Madame Evangeline matches these two together for a celestial escape on the pleasure planet, Elatia.
Will Ava and Nate find what they're looking for, or will their date be just another night on another planet?
You can find out more about Jessica and her books at www.markofthestars.com.
Amazon best-seller Veronica Scott is a two-time recipient of the SFR Galaxy Award and has written a number of science-fiction and paranormal romances. Mission to Mahjundar is her latest. You can find out more about her and her books at veronicascott.wordpress.com. Please e-mail Veronica at scifiencounters@gmail.com about content related to this column. Due to the volume of mail, e-mails may not be answered personally, but all will be read.